Post navigation

The psychology behind high heels – and what it means for your bunion

I personally have never understood the love affair that women have with sky-high shoes. Have heels ever gone down in height? I guess flats made a comeback for a hot minute, but honestly, I simply cannot go shopping anymore without seeing the heels rise further and further into the stratosphere. Sure, they make your legs and butt look good, but is there something more psychological behind female obsession with stilettos?

Personal or business?
A columnist from the Tucson Weekly recently addressed the same issue, using Carrie Bradshaw from the popular "Sex and the City" show and Victoria Beckham – my fellow bunion sufferer – as examples of why women continually totter around in shoes that are not only hard to walk in, but may cause injury. She went on to explain that these characters may entice women to join a "club" where you have to have at least a 4-inch Blahnik to join. However, most women understand that movie stars and the shoes they wear are not practical for day-to-day routine. So why do ladies continue to festishize over high heels?

According to article, women in the workplace looking to break through the glass ceiling are often to blame – how counterproductive does that seem? Show off your mental prowess by amping up your leg appeal? The source reported that although it has been long thought that these shoes were created to attract men, many women in competition for jobs will wear high heels as an unofficial symbol of power and ambition. Shoe companies know this too – according to the source, Macy's flagship store in New York City recently unveiled the "largest shoe floor on earth," with more than 280,000 pairs of shoes, most of them heels – all of this done under a recession-fueled budget. Why? Women think heels will not only make them look good, they will also get them ahead in the business world. Apparently height matters to women as well – being literally on the same level as their male counterparts provides a "leg up," so to speak.

Who needs 'em?
I'm here to say this: Ladies, the long-term damage that these sexy shoes will do to your feet is not worth any man or supposed career climb. Everything from back pain to bunion surgery can be in your future if you continue these unhealthy trends. Just look at all these growing numbers of women in CEO positions … do you think they are tottering around in heels? I don't think so! Using your smarts to get ahead in business is always a better move than putting your feet through torture.